


The Ultimate Assistant

by Dippytrippy122



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-16
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-01-14 20:12:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18483538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dippytrippy122/pseuds/Dippytrippy122
Summary: What would have happened had Makoto been the one stabbed that night instead of Sayaka. When luck pulls him from the clutches of death how will the two friends deal with the emotional fallout that comes with it? An AU wherein Sayaka does not die at the start and continues to participate in the killing game. Naezono.





	1. Prologue: To Survive

Disclaimer: I do not own Danganronpa in any way, shape or form.

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Her breaths were heavy, labored; movements slow and precise. The actions she was about to undertake were reprehensible. She knew this, but she simply could not bring herself to care.

She had to get out.

Looking back, she could admit her actions were not of human design. The body she inhabited was empty, a husk left behind meant only to house her primal instincts.

She had to get out.

The same thoughts were echoing through her mind in a state of chaotic madness. She couldn't stay here anymore, not like this.

She had to get out.

A knock on the door snapped her to attention. Gripping the handle of the knife in her hands until her knuckles became white, she stepped forward.

She was getting out. Now.

Opening the door in one swift motion she plunged the makeshift weapon forward into the area she suspected her target's stomach would be. Feeling surprisingly little resistance to her actions, a rush of adrenaline filled her.

As she pulled the blade back out, a flash of negative emotions filled her mind. The shame and disgust she felt no longer masked behind false bravado. She felt her eyes watering.

While she could not claim to have any form of attachment towards the one she had chosen for escape it was still a human life that had been cut short.

Looking up she spoke softly, her voice full of warped regret.

"I'm sorry Kuwata-kun-"

Her voice was caught in her throat.

Staring back at her was not the expected pained expression of her target.

"Naegi-kun…?"

Gazing at her with a look of both hurt and confusion, the brown-haired boy dropped to the floor. A large pool of blood began expanding from beneath his chest.

"NAEGI-KUN!"

Falling beside him, like a puppet with its strings cut, she closed the door and gently pulled the boy's head into her lap. She began petting his head as tears pooled around her eyes.

"No… no, this can't be happening…" she felt herself hyperventilating.

God, what had she done.

Makoto looked up, a vacant expression in his eyes. The surface he was laying on was so soft and it smelled perfect. The face of the idol, normally cheerful in demeanor was twisted into something alien; tears cascading down her cheeks.

To him, however, she looked simply angelic.

"Are… are you a doll…?"

She blinked at his reiterated statement from when they first met. The singer tried to force a smile but instead began choking on her words.

"There is no way someone like me could be anything as precious as that." her head bowed lower as her tears began gushing out. "I'm terrible."

He looked at her weakly, using his remaining strength to gently wipe away a few of the tears still left on her cheek.

She held his hand in place, feeling the warmth slowly leave his body.

"I-" he paused as a coughing fit took over. "I know… how much you wanted to get out…"

A few tears began to escape his eyes. "I just wish I could… have helped you somehow." he stopped to sputter as a wave of nausea passed throughout his body.

"I'm sorry, Maizono-san…"

The idol couldn't take the guilt anymore and hugged his head tighter into her, willing herself not to lose the contents of her stomach.

"No, Naegi-kun." she sobbed, "This wasn't supposed to happen. I just- I don't know what to do." she was stuttering, a truthful explanation evading her.

His life was fading; she could see it. There was no form of help within reach and his condition was worsening every second she faltered.

She couldn't take it if he died. The idea appalled her far more than she ever thought possible.

The only person that believed in her was going to die.

And it was her fault.

Makoto looked up, the last of his vision fading. He could see the complete despair in his friends' eyes and internally shuddered at the depths he could see within them.

It was strange. He was scared of dying, he did not want to die. He knew this, but the face of desperation on the girl above him was what spurred him to speak.

"Drawer…"

Sayaka stopped hastily wiped her eyes as she looked more clearly at the rapidly fading boy on her lap. The word echoed through her mind.

Drawer…?

She looked towards the drawers in the desk and her eyes opened wide.

The sewing kit!

Taking a deep breath, she gently took the key out of the injured boy's pocket and bolted out into the hall.

Opening the door to her dorm she ran over and grabbed the item in question. Sparing a glance to the side, she spotted the room's garbage bin. In the middle of it was the disk that incited her paranoia in the first place.

'This is your chance!'

What…?

'You wanted to get out, didn't you?' the voice in her head continued bitingly. 'Well this is your chance. Just switch rooms again and get Kuwata to take the fall when he comes to visit. Unorthodox, but it would surely work.'

No.

"I don't care if it would work or not, it isn't worth it!"

Yelling at nothing Sayaka ran a hand down her face as she focused her breathing. She was currently very appreciative of the soundproof nature of the rooms.

It certainly didn't paint a pretty picture of her mental state, after all.

'Are you sure about that?' her thoughts continued, nonchalantly. 'You may never get another chance at this again.

For a second, she began considering it more carefully. Could she do this? If she went through with it she could get out, get back to her friends.

Her job.

Her life.

Her dream-

The thoughts stopped there.

It wasn't worth it.

Her ambitions could not be worth the death of someone as pure as Makoto. If she truly believed that, then her career was no longer healthy for her to maintain.

Steeling her resolve, she ran back to the Luckster's room and closed the door behind her.

Gently placing the boys head back down on her lap, she scrambled to grab the unopened package and hastily ripped it apart. Taking the needle and some thread into her shaky hands she felt his pulse and breathed a sigh of relief at the weak response.

She could do this.

"I have been the worst assistant possible Makoto-kun and I certainly don't deserve to call myself that anymore…" she shook her head. "But I promise that I will save you."

The next hour was spent stitching her fellow Ultimate back to health. Eventually, with the result of a sizable-looking scar, she finished her work and stepped back.

It was lucky that she had expected someone of a different height, otherwise, his wound could have been inflicted into a far more serious area.

'Lucky, huh.'

Having locked her emotions into the recesses of her mind during the procedure she felt them all bubbling up once more as she gazed upon the broken boy at her feet.

'Was this really worth it?' her conscience once again mocked her. 'You tried to murder someone and the only one in this place that actually gives a damn about you paid the price for it.'

Her mind was on the recesses of breaking down but she needed to hold on. At least for Makoto's sake if not her own.

Picking up the brown-haired boy she placed him on the bed and tucked him in. Feeling his forehead, she frowned lightly at the offset of a fever.

'If only the water wasn't shut off during nighttime. Damnit.' She inwardly swore. Leave it to that stupid bear to make things more difficult than they already were.

Parting his hair away from his forehead she gently began wiping the sweat away from it.

Taking a pillow and a spare sheet she laid down on the floor next to the bed.

Holding onto his hand she fell asleep as thoughts of escape filtered through her dreams…

"Ngh… what happened…?"

Sayaka slowly got up from the ground and looked around her room. Why was she on the floor…?

She gasped.

"Naegi-kun!"

Scrambling to look over at the bed she was stunned to find it was empty. Made, even. Did he leave already?

"Wait, that's not right." She spoke confusedly. "He should have been far too injured to walk so soon."

Opening her PDA, she noticed that the scheduled morning breakfast meeting was well underway.

"Maybe he's there…?" she pondered. It seemed unlikely.

Though as a means of calming her anxiety, she figured it would be best to check.

Fishing into her pocket to pull out the key to her room she walked over to it and quickly got ready for the day. Putting the kitchen knife into her desk drawer intent on replacing it later, she headed towards the shower.

Keeping up appearances was a necessity after all.

In record time, the Ultimate Idol left her room and switched the nameplates back.

She then headed towards the cafeteria.

"Ah, Maizono-san! Great to have you join us for breakfast!"

Sayaka blinked before forcing a smile.

"Thank you Ishimaru-kun. Sorry about getting here so late, I had trouble sleeping last night."

The Ultimate Moral Compass seemed to consider her excuse before waving it off.

"That's no problem! You're not the last one to get here, after all!" he smiled. "Just make sure not to make a habit of it!"

Making sure her smile remained stagnant the idol nodded before walking past him and towards the large table holding the rest of the classmates.

"Maizono-chan, oi!"

Her eyes widened as the voice from the Ultimate Baseball Pro reached her ears.

Awkwardly waving back at him he saddled up with a grin.

"So, what was up last night? I knocked on your door but I never got an answer from ya." He began rubbing his neck sheepishly. "I hope everything's alright?"

The idol fought back the reflexive bile making its way up her throat. She shook her head before crafting another 'perfect' smile for the athlete in front of her.

"Yes, I'm sorry about that Kuwata-kun. Everything's alright now." She bowed her head. "I'm going to get some breakfast now. Talk later?"

Without waiting for a response, she disengaged from the conversation and hurriedly walked over to the rest of the group.

She beamed in true happiness as she spotted the Luckster sitting at the table.

"Naegi-kun-!"

She stopped short. He was talking to Kyoko and Junko, a grin on his face mirrored faintly by theirs.

What was going on…?

Trying again she poked him lightly on his shoulder. Still no response.

Kyoko turned to look at her. Her eyes were narrowed and she took the underlying threat within them.

Junko had much the same look on her face, though it was decidedly more murderous and yet somehow less detectable. If Sayaka hadn't been so good at identifying others she would have missed it entirely.

Where had that come from?

Makoto, having finished his food got up from the table and brought his plate to the kitchen to wash it.

The idol was conflicted.

Should she go after him?

"No."

Sayaka jumped back with a startled "eep" and was met face to face with the Ultimate ? who narrowed her eyes.

"I don't know what you did. But you need to stay away for now."

Where the hell did this come from?

The blue-haired teenager cocked her head to the side and feigned ignorance.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Kirigiri-san."

The detective picked up on the hostility within the honorific and shrugged her shoulders.

"Alright. Well, if that's the case then mind telling me why Naegi-kun didn't respond to you?"

"No." she bit her lip. "He was probably too engrossed in your conversation."

Kyoko shook her head.

"You're free to arrive at your own conclusions as I am mine." She looked back at the masked expression her fellow Ultimate wore and sighed. "Just some friendly advice: don't push it right now. I don't mean it to be cruel, and again I can only draw assumptions about what happened but you should give him time."

She paused in her step.

"Wounds don't heal so easily. Mental or physical."

Sayaka stared as the mysterious girl walked away. Was she told about what happened last night? No. There should only be two people aware of said events and she knew she hadn't mentioned it.

Did Makoto? It didn't seem likely.

While he had talked to Junko briefly in the past, he had never been seen interacting with Kyoko before now. Even if he had, however, she doubted he would ever turn his back on her.

'Wasn't that the entire reason why you chose him to be your target?'

She gnashed her teeth as more traitorous thoughts entered her mind. Things were getting worse and she couldn't keep this up anymore.

She had to go talk to him.

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Well, that had been the plan at least.

She tried. She really did. Unfortunately, it seemed that every time she tried to approach him something happened which made the Luckster temporarily unavailable.

At first, she thought the fact that so many people wanted to talk to him was cute, but it started to become aggravating when nearly every girl in their class stole that chance from her.

Seriously, since when was he so easygoing with everyone here?

She realized that perhaps there was never a point where he wasn't. She had just stolen so much of his time that he had never been given the chance to branch out and converse with anyone else.

But, she didn't mean to do that…

'Are you sure about that?' she looked down. 'Making him want to be around only you? Wasn't that what you wanted? It made using him that much easier.'

Sayaka shook her head rapidly.

"No! I may have almost done something irredeemable but I never faked my feelings around him."

'Really?' the voice scoffed.

"Yes!" she cried. "I really care about him!"

A knock on the door interrupted her frantic monologue. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she reluctantly opened it.

"Naegi-kun!?"

Hurriedly the singer stood back; offering to let him come in. He didn't react.

Sayaka looked at him in confusion.

"Naegi-kun, what-"

"Maizono-san."

She flinched at the informal moniker attached to her name. While she knew it was the way he referred to her before; the tone was colder than expected.

"Maizono-san…" he began, softly. "I think I need some space from you… for a while, at least."

Sayaka felt her world shatter around her. She unwillingly took a step back.

"Nae… Naegi-kun why…"

She reached out her hand towards him, her eyes becoming increasingly glassy as he stood further out of reach.

He didn't answer immediately.

"Maizono-san the more I think about everything, the more I realize that I put too much trust in you far too quickly."

He shook his head.

"This is hard. You can't even imagine how difficult this is for me to say." he smiled derisively. "Even now all I want to do is apologize and hang out with you like before, but…"

Makoto looked back up his eyes shining with determination.

"I'm pretty sure we both need this, alright?" He spoke with conviction, though his smile was fading fast. "This won't be easy on me either but… I can't go on like this."

Doing his best to ignore the heartbroken expression upon the idol's face and the tremulous feeling within his own stomach he stepped away from the door frame, his hair shadowing his eyes.

His final words twisted the knife deeper into her chest.

"I'm sorry, Maizono-san. Goodbye."

As the door closed, Sayaka Maizono wept until she had nothing left to give.

God, what had she done.

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Side Note: The ending is purposefully rushed-sounding. Later chapters will go back and look at this scene and others specifically. Just be patient:).

A/N: Welcome to the first chapter of my new undertaking:). Upon writing this, a good majority of this fanfic is complete. Something I intend to do with most of my longer stories moving forward. (Not all, but most). This concept came to me years ago but I struggled to write beyond the first chapter of the prologue for so long… until all of a sudden I wrote about 40,000 words over the course of a couple weeks:P.

This story will deviate greatly from canon, in ways that I think would be realistic of the characters. I will focus on both viewpoints of Sayaka and Makoto and how I think their relationship would have continued had she survived. A couple people have written stories with a concept similar to this before; but they change things in ways I don't, and vice-versa… and they are all abandoned so.:p

Please review if you want a chapter sooner than otherwise:). Unsure what the upload schedule will be but any support given will make me post quicker:D.


	2. Chapter 1: What Comes After

Chapter 1: What Comes After

Sayaka Maizono. A girl considered to be equal parts beautiful and talented. Intelligent, and graceful. Loving, and kind. A persona crafted from many years of necessity and paranoia.

It goes without saying, however, that there were still things she kept hidden.

Whether it was her risqué modeling, her ESP-based abilities or her occasional depressive episodes; she considered herself an expert in deception.

So, it was a shock to the model that a simple rejection would affect her so badly.

'Should you really be so surprised though? "Naegi-kun" has been on your mind for years now. Not only that, but he happens to be the only one in this hell-hole that trusts you.' The voice scoffed. 'Or I should say, he did trust you.'

"STOP IT!"

Wrapping a pillow around her head, Sayaka tried to tune out the world around her. It was futile of course, as the mocking voice was, in reality, her own subconscious.

The one thing she was unable to hide things from.

Growling in aggravation, the teen forced herself out of bed and into the shower. The morning announcement would trigger soon so she may as well get ready for it.

She certainly wasn't going to fall asleep again at any rate.

The water cascaded down her back as a light moan of reprieve tore its way through her throat.

'I feel so foolish…'

It was the first time in what felt like years that she could not even force a smile. It astounded her. Even when she received the worst news of her life she was able to act like she was fine.

But right now? It seemed impossible.

"Naegi-kun..."

As the saying goes, 'you don't know what you have until it's gone.'

The anxiety that had been bubbling up ever since arriving in this screwed up place had finally reached its peak. Without Makoto to help level it out-

"I can't do this."

Her mental state was deteriorating. She couldn't salvage it, not by herself.

Looking into the mirror, she took note of the dark circles under her eyes and the marks of abrasion running along her body. Clear signs of sleep deprivation and lack of self-care.

She was a mess.

"I can't do this alone…" her head fell as sobs began wracking their way through her body.

"I'm so sorry Naegi-kun…"

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"Ah, Maizono-san! Good Morning-are you doing alright, today?"

Sayaka nodded numbly to the question presented by the Moral Compass. Walking past him she took a seat at one of the tables as far from the group as possible.

She could feel the stares from the other students but she couldn't bring herself to care.

The only one she did care about wasn't here yet. Not that she could speak to him even if he were.

"Ah… I see… Well that's good then! Glad to hear it!"

Taka smiled widely before walking back into the kitchen to grab some food. This left Sayaka under scrutiny from everyone else.

She had managed to clear away any signs that implied she had been crying. Though forcing positive emotions in her current state remained futile, it seemed.

At least the others seemed willing to leave her be-

"Hey Maizono-chan, how are you feeling?"

Damnit.

Failing a smile, Sayaka looked into the eyes of the athlete with an expression that greatly unnerved him and everyone else present.

"I'm fine. Thanks, Kuwata-kun."

Gulping at the tone, he managed to half-heartedly force out, "Ah… right, right. Of course. No problem…" before running away from the situation.

Subtle.

Forcing a piece of toast down her throat she drank her glass of water and sighed mournfully.

Honestly, she did not want to be here. At all. However, she knew that since she didn't eat yesterday she had to have something. Plus, if she never showed up to the cafeteria Kiyotaka undoubtedly would have bothered her until she did.

She wished to avoid that at all costs.

Looking over at the main table, her complexion cleared dramatically just by seeing Makoto alive and well.

Though the number of girls talking to him did not help lower her feelings of anxiety any.

Finishing her toast, she began to nervously chew her lip as she took in the situation in front of her.

Why did this bother her so much? It was getting ridiculous!

"Well! It appears that everyone is here, so let's start this meeting-AHH!"

Time froze as Taka tripped over an ill-placed chair; his bowl of cereal sent flying towards Junko.

Well, Sayaka thought it was flying towards the model in any case. Instead of getting hit, however, the girl just seemed to vanish from her spot.

'How the hell did she move so fast!?'

The idol wasn't sure, but it was evident that many of the others shared in her confusion. Kyoko, Byakuya and Sakura, on the other hand, looked intrigued by the development.

Junko, interestingly enough, appeared the most startled. It was almost as if she did not notice she had moved until after it happened.

Was that even possible?

"Ah my bad guys," the pink-haired girl recovered. "I'm used to being hit on a lot so I took some fighting classes. My reflexes are scarily accurate at times!"

Judging by their faces, it looked as if most people present believed her explanation.

Though the aforementioned three remained unconvinced.

"Yes well," Taka started awkwardly. "I apologize for that mishap Enoshima-san. I'm going to get more food and then we can reconvene for our meeting."

Sayaka sighed.

She really didn't want to be here for this.

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A short while later Taka rejoined the group.

"Alright! So, what is the plan for today going to be?"

His exuberant question was met with a rather subdued reception. Barely audible mumbles and incoherent grumblings being the extent of it.

"Oh…" He coughed into his hand. "Well, this simply won't do! We must set forth and explore, see if there are any escape paths or clues we missed-!"

"What's the point?"

Junko's question was straight to the point. It caused him to falter.

"Wha-what do you mean, Enoshima-san?"

The model rolled her eyes.

"I meannnnn what's the point in us using our energy to look for a way out, duh!" Taking the confused looks in she sighed dramatically before elaborating. "We've been searching for some 'uber-secret' exit for days now and we haven't found anything. I honestly don't think the mastermind is someone who would leave something so convenient just lying around, guys."

Her explanation was worded in a way that seemed out of character for the air-headed model. That being said, no one could deny the validity in the girls' words. Even Kiyotaka had gone silent.

"I disagree, Enoshima-san. There must be a way out of here! We just have to work together and we can find it."

Makoto's voice was quiet but his words were motivating. To most, anyway.

"Preposterous." Byakuya snorted. "Trying to find an exit, like Enoshima-san said, is pointless. There is simply no way the mastermind would make such a simple mistake after setting everything up."

He got up from the table, a smirk clear on his face.

"If you want to leave, you have to follow the rules. Kill someone and graduate." Walking towards the exit of the cafeteria he paused and looked over his shoulder; a manic grin startling all present. "Don't forget: this is a game plain and simple. And I WILL be the victor."

With those bone-chilling words, the Ultimate Affluent Progeny left the room. Makoto hung his head realizing that his words had been negated and that the room's oppressive atmosphere had only escalated further.

Taka, of course, tried once again to get back some semblance of control but ultimately, he couldn't. The downcast expressions on everyone's faces were enough to show that the meeting was a failure.

"Sorry, guys. I didn't mean to do that…" Junko spoke, getting up from her seat. "Excuse me."

Sayaka watched idly as the pink-haired girl walked away, wishing that she could find the energy to do so herself.

"This is what happens when you do not adapt." Celestia bit out; a pristine smile upon her face. "The reason that everyone is worried so much about this 'killing game' is simply because all of you hold unnecessary attachments to the outside world. Just let go of them and accept your new life here, as I have."

Having said her piece, the gambler got up and walked away as gracefully as possible. Mondo, Leon, and Chihiro all followed soon after.

Sayaka decided to take the chance while it was available and joined a short distance behind.

The depressing conclusion to the meeting combined with her inability to talk to Makoto would up only worsening her mood. If it wasn't for the food she just consumed she had no doubt that she would begin dry heaving.

Locking herself in her room she sat on her bed and stared blankly at a wall. Such an action was not something she would ordinarily consider productive and in her line of work stopping to take a break was alien to her.

Of course, being an idol had never prepared her for something like this.

'You sure about that, Sayaka-chan? For someone who was "unprepared", you planned out a murder pretty efficiently.'

"SHUT UP! LEAVE ME ALONE, ALREADY!"

Sayaka threw herself face-first into her bed, trying and failing once more to silence the echoes in her mind.

Of course, it was never that simple.

'Leave you alone!?' it cried incredulously. 'Why should I? Someone like you doesn't deserve any reprieve. You're fake and sad and alone. You're pathetic.'

The idol willed herself not to cry. But damnit if it wasn't difficult to hold them back.

'Naegi-kun please come talk to me… I miss you so much.'

A knock on her door interrupted her thoughts. Looking up, startled, she wiped her face off with some spare tissues and walked towards it hesitantly.

Hoping against hope that it was Makoto she gently opened the door.

"Kirigiri…san?"

The pink-haired girl stared at the distraught girl for a few seconds before speaking softly.

"May I come in for a minute? I wished to discuss something with you."

Sayaka weighed the pros and cons of the situation. There was something about this girl that rubbed her the wrong way. It could have been the way she talked to her the other day but deep down, she knew it wasn't that.

She hated how the girl saw right through her.

"Yeah," Sayaka relented. "Come in."

Stepping inside the room, the mysterious girl looked around as if examining the state of things.

Immediately, she felt as if she were on trial.

Just who is this girl?

"You're not doing too well, are you?"

The singer snorted at the question.

"What tipped you off? The way I look, the way I act, or my disaster of a bedroom."

Kyoko chuckled at that.

"Touché." Cocking her head to the side, the girl analyzed the blue-haired teen in front of her. "I know I alluded to this before, and I think only Enoshima-san and I suspect something but…" she trailed off. "Something happened between you and Naegi-kun, correct?"

Sayaka turned away from her and grasped her sleeve.

"So, you don't know what happened then?" no use in hiding it, she supposed.

There was a pause.

"No, no I don't." Sayaka sighed in relief. "However," the mysterious girl continued. "I noticed he was clutching his chest earlier today as if in pain."

It was a leading statement as if saying 'did you have anything to do with that?'

Sayaka remained silent. Though that in itself was an answer.

"I see."

Kyoko spoke quietly.

"I won't bother you with any more questions. I was just curious is all." She turned away from the idol. "Thank you for your time. Have a good night Maizono-san."

Without waiting for a response, the silver-haired girl left the room as silently as she had entered it. As intrusive as the visit was Sayaka could not deny that it had helped to quiet her thoughts substantially.

'Someone is already beginning to suspect you now. Are you going to do something about it?'

She almost wished the other girl stayed longer.

Almost.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She wasn't sure how long it had been since Kyoko left her room. An hour? Two hours? For all she knew it far exceeded that.

She was just too numb to give it any mind.

"Maybe I should eat something." The idol decided. "It's probably throwing me off."

Taking a peek at her PDA she found it was nearly Nighttime but not quite. If she was quick about it she could grab a snack from the cafeteria before it closed.

With a plan now in mind, she began making herself presentable for the off-chance she ran into someone. Pleased with the results, she made to open her door when-

"Wait, what? My door is stuck?" She frowned. "Is something blocking it?"

It almost felt like there was something jammed in front of it, halting her progress.

Narrowing her eyes, she continued jostling with the door until, with a good shove, she finally forced it open.

Peeking around the door frame, she stepped outside with an annoyed expression on her face.

"Alright, what the hell was-?"

Her voice got caught in her throat.

Lying on the floor, blood dripping from a cut on the back of their neck lay one of her classmates.

"Enoshima…san…?"

Then she screamed.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

To Survive: Deadly Life

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A/N: Just wanted to give a quick thank you for the support you guys are showing this story already. :) I'm aware this fandom is relatively small so review counts are generally down (unless it's just people submitting OC's which this story won't be incorporating). Keep it up. It seriously helps :).

Update Schedule: This story is set up into different arcs (equivalent to the in-game 'chapters'), which will help dictate when things are uploaded. Every week or two, depending on reader response, I'll upload the next chapter in a given arc. When an arc is done, I'll take some time to spruce up the next one and the cycle will repeat until completion. This allows me to avoid giving you guys cliffhangers that won't be answered for some time.


	3. Under Fire

Sayaka stumbled. The world blurred around her. What happened…? One moment she was leaving her room to get some food before bed, the next she was staring at the corpse of one of her classmates. Someone that, in her mind, had done nothing to receive anyone's ire.

Junko Enoshima lay dead on the ground.

She was idly aware of the approaching students. Her scream, only notifying the ones, not in their rooms. Aoi and Sakura who had been in the cafeteria at the time stared at the corpse in shock. Immediately afterward, they began herding up the others.

Sayaka's mind was elsewhere, however.

'Who… who did this…?'

*DING DONG BONG BING*

"A body has been discovered! Please reconvene in the gym for an announcement!"

The students who had yet to leave their rooms did so quickly. None of them looked ready to see the corpse on the ground, however. She couldn't blame them.

Looking over at the group more closely she took note of the distraught look in Makoto's eyes and felt her heart break further.

She had almost forgotten how close he seemed to have gotten with the pink-haired model.

'Hey, at least she is out of the picture from now on. Maybe now you can-!'

She shook her head violently.

Her mind was getting far more toxic. This situation was worsening it every second, it seemed.

"Ne, Maizono-san… are you alright?"

Looking up, she saw the Luckster staring at her with a concerned expression on his face.

What should she say?

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine Naegi-kun. Thank you for asking."

Well, not that.

"That's good then…"

"Yeah…"

…

Makoto looked like he wanted to say something else before shaking his head and running off to join the rest of the group.

She sighed numbly.

"Guess I may as well follow them."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Alright, you bastards here's the rundown of the class trial!"

Monokuma grating voice was the first thing she heard as she reached the wide-open gymnasium.

'Class trial…?'

It was clear that she had missed the start of the explanation due to her lagging behind. The concept seemed rather simple, however.

But, why was something like that being brought up in the first place?

"During the trial, you'll have to present your arguments about who you think the blackened is." The bear giggled. "And once everything comes to an end, the outcome will be decided by popular vote!"

Popular vote…? So, they had to decide who did it based on majority rule?

She wasn't given long to think about it.

"If the answer you've given is correct only the one who disturbed your peace may be punished. The rest may continue their communal life." Monokuma continued. "However, if you choose poorly then the one who got away with murder will survive, and the rest of you will receive your punishment."

Sayaka felt her breath hitch.

"So, um… what exactly is this punishment you keep talking about…?"

Hifumi's question caused Monokuma to cock his head to the side.

"Oh! Well... to put it simply," he paused for dramatic effect. "It's execution!"

"EXECUTION!?"

What…?

Sayaka's eyes opened wide at the explanation given. She tuned out the rest of the conversation, as her classmates badgered the bear with questions.

'Does that mean that if I had actually gone through with killing Kuwata-kun, everyone would have…?'

She suddenly felt deathly ill.

'I'd inadvertently have murdered everyone else? Including…'

The air felt very heavy as she stared longingly at the brown-haired boy in the middle of the group.

'Naegi-kun…'

"Alright kids, here's all the information you'll need related to this case!" The bear continued on.

"I call it, the Monokuma File!"

Looking through it briefly, the singer found that it was little more than an autopsy report with a strange name stapled on it.

'Lovely.'

Monokuma mockingly shooed them away. "Okay! Now get on with your investigation kids. Ta-ta!"

And with that, the bear vanished as quickly as he appeared.

Sayaka felt an anxiety attack coming on as the reality of the situation became that much more real. One of them killed one of their classmates in a bid to escape this place and if they couldn't figure out who did it they were all doomed.

To make matters worse-

'I almost did the same thing. I could have been responsible for the deaths of everyone here.' She closed her eyes and willed her tears away. 'I may not have known about that rule before now but... it doesn't change the fact that I would have committed mass-murder just to retain my status as an idol. What kind of monster am I-?'

"Maizono-san, are you alright?"

Kyoko's question broke the veil over her mind. Shaking her head to clear it, she spoke softly.

"Yeah. Sorry about that, what were you guys discussing?"

The girl's expression wavered for a second into confusion before she schooled it quickly.

"We were just assigning people to guard the crime scene in the event that the blackened thought to mess with it." She paused in her explanation to point out the volunteers. "Oogami-san and Owada-kun offered to watch over it together. I don't think I need to explain the effectiveness in using them for this job?"

Sayaka shook her head. She highly doubted any of them could take on Mondo let alone Sakura.

Together? Suicide.

"Good." Kyoko nodded. "Moving on then, I noticed something very peculiar. Well, not just me, we all did." she amended.

It was at this moment that Sayaka was suddenly very aware of everyone's stares on her person. Twelve different sets of eyes were looking at her with various levels of confusion, distrust and in two specific cases, disgust. Makoto, the exception.

"Wait, what? What's wrong, guys-?

"I'll just cut to the chase, Maizono-san." Kyoko cut off. "Enoshima-san's body was found in front of your door; her mortal wounds sustained more than likely in the vicinity of said door." She paused, letting her words sink in. "I, of course, don't need to explain how bad this looks for you, so if you have some initial rebuttals we'd appreciate hearing them."

Wait-

"WHAT!?" She screamed, her composure breaking for a second. "You think I did it!? Why!?" she took a deep breath to center herself. Panicking would do no good. "Just because she was found in front of my room doesn't mean that I-"

"How can you prove that you found her in front of your room?"

Sayaka turned towards the one who had interrupted her. Byakuya stood with an eyebrow raised.

"Well? Do you have anything to say to this, Maizono-san? Or will you save us the trouble and admit it already."

The poor idol was completely lost.

"Bu-but… you're not making any sense. What are you talking about?"

She looked at Kyoko with a pleading look on her face. The girl decided to have pity on her.

"The problem Maizono-san is that we simply cannot take your word as the law that you didn't just kill her in your room. The body was found so close to it, after all."

"But that's stupid!" Sayaka yelled. "Why would I kill her in my room of all places? And why would I leave the body just outside of it where anyone could come to that conclusion!?"

Though, looking at everyone's expressions it was clear that she wasn't changing anyone's mind.

"The reason that the body was left there was more than likely due to Oogami-san and Asahina-san's cafeteria excursion."

Sayaka looked pale.

"Yes. As you no doubt gathered, those two being out past the proposed curfew would have thrown a proverbial wrench into any plans of murder. It was because of this, that you had to improvise a scene that would make your innocence more apparent." Kyoko spoke; each word shattering Sayaka's view on the situation. "All you would have had to do was drop the body on the ground before letting out a scream to misdirect us. A simple ploy, but effective. Under the guise of leaving your room for some food, you not only rid yourself of the corpse but also create an alibi for yourself. I don't think I need to explain that this also accounts for why the body was slumped, as it was. Furthermore, I'll say this just in case: you cannot use the excuse that you weren't strong enough to pick her up. Enoshima-san was a model, and quite light as a result." She narrowed her eyes. "As for why you would do such a thing in your room, the reason is quite simple. If Enoshima-san was in the room with you then it would have kept the murder contained. A surprise attack, from an ally, would have no doubt been effective."

Kyoko sighed her long-winded explanation over.

"So? Can you refute any of what I said, Maizono-san? Again, this is only initial speculation but I am quite certain that it plausible, yes?"

It was plausible. Strikingly so. But she knew that she hadn't done it. Ignoring the stunned looks being sent Kyoko's way, Sayaka began floundering for a response.

"Well, I uh-I mean I can't really argue with that, it's true... bu-but I swear I didn't do it!"

No one looked convinced. Risking a peek at the Luckster she couldn't stop the shudder of disappointment at his conflicted expression.

She was all alone, here.

"I see," Kyoko muttered. "No sense in standing around here then, let's investigate the crime scene the best we can."

Sayaka looked on sadly as everyone walked past her, shooting her looks that degraded her self-worth farther and farther. The last person to leave was-

"Naegi-kun…?"

The boy's expression was a mixture of things she could not define. It was as if all of his negative emotions had been crudely forced together; with only a spark of positivity keeping it at bay. Still, he spoke.

"I don't believe it was you…"

His voice was so soft, so hoarse, she had almost missed it. But that was all the affirmation she needed. As she watched him walk away, his head down to hide his pain from the world, Sayaka narrowed her eyes; deciding right then and there that she would prove her innocence and make up with Makoto.

She had to.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That had been the plan, at least. Investigating was not bringing up many leads. The only piece of evidence that had been found was a piece of cloth wrapped around the wound in the girls' head.

On top of this, a good majority of the class had crowded around Sayaka's room, warding it off to keep people from entering; specifically, her. Aside from Byakuya, Kyoko and surprisingly Makoto no one else bothered to do much more than a basic check of the room. The singer thought it was pointless to barre her from entering. After all, she knew for a fact that Junko had never been inside at any point.

No one listened to her arguments, however.

So that was the situation Sayaka found herself in. Walking away from the group with her head hunched over the Monokuma File hoping against hope that she could find some information on their mysterious killer.

[Victim: Junko Enoshima]

["The body was discovered at 9:30 PM]

["It was found in front of Sayaka Maizono's room, hunched over against the door]

["A large gash was found on the back of the victims' head. Discolored skin can be found in various places around the neck."]

["Additionally, numerous internal injuries had been sustained within the body]

It was a lot of information, Sayaka concluded. It was the third time she had read it and she was still surprised by the amount they had been given. Though, something felt wrong.

"What is it that's putting me off this autopsy report so much?" Aside from the obvious of who had handed it out.

There was something with the long explanation that bugged her. It was too… wordy, almost. As if the cause of death was-

Wait.

"What exactly is the cause of death, anyway?"

The gears started to turn as Sayaka continued to re-read the report with a more critical eye. It yielded no results.

"I can't find it! This stupid thing doesn't say!"

On first glance of the body, the obvious conclusion was that the pink-haired girl had died from the gash to the back of her neck. It's what most people would jump to, and what, she assumed, the majority of her class would believe it was.

"I can use this, then." She smiled, proud of herself. "Maybe I can actually help!"

Yelling out triumphantly, she jumped as Makoto appeared out of nowhere. It looked as if he was walking from the other side of the school back towards her room.

What…?

'Is that a bloody bandage in his hand…?'

Sayaka cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"What was that? Why did Naegi-kun come from the direction of the gymnasium? He had left it to help with the investigation earlier so what did he hope to achieve by going there?"

Her questions went ignored.

"Erm, so ah… I'm getting tired of waiting. What say we just get started, hm?" Monokuma's voice echoed from the stereos overhead. "It's time for the long-awaited… class trial! Now then, allow me to appoint a proper location for the proceedings. Please go through the red door on the first floor of the school!"

The voice went silent as Sayaka steadied her inner thoughts.

It was time.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A short while later, the group of fourteen high schoolers pooled into the room just beyond the giant red doors. An elevator shaft at the end of it, the room was stuffy with feelings of anxiousness and distrust.

Most of which was aimed at Sayaka. She certainly felt the brunt of it.

"I'll need your assistance in this coming trial, Maizono-san."

The blue-haired teen turned towards the voice. Kyoko didn't look back.

"If we want to corner the true killer, I am going to need all the help I can get."

Sayaka frowned.

"What do you mean…?"

The girl was silent for a moment.

"The culprit, in this case, has done an excellent job covering their tracks. In fact, there isn't much at all, in and around your room. At least, in a way that would point to anyone else."

The pop sensation frowned. It almost seemed as if that statement meant more than what was said on the surface.

"Try not to worry about it." Kyoko said, waving the girls' concerns off. "You'll see during the trial, I'm sure."

"During the trial…?" Sayaka questioned softly. "What do you mean by that? For that matter, why have you been so adamant in talking to me lately? We hadn't done much of that in the past."

Kyoko chuckled lightly.

"Adamant in talking to you? Yes, I suppose I have been. Though, it's not for any reason you're thinking of." She paused as the elevator doors in front of them opened. "I'm just interested in finding the truth of the situation. Nothing more, nothing less."

With that, the Ultimate ? entered the elevator shaft with the rest of the class. Sayaka followed close behind, taking calming breaths as the doors closed behind her. The small space was stuffy. It was filled with despair and it threatened to swallow her whole.

But she would not let it.

'I am going to win this trial. Not just for me, but for everyone else too.'

She was going to prove her worth.

To herself and to Makoto.


	4. Chapter 3: Trial for Life

Chapter 3 – Trial for Life

The elevator doors opened up to a large circular room. In the middle stood sixteen podiums for each of the students, plus one, to stand at. Sayaka listened as Celeste asked about the additional stand and Monokuma answered. He claimed there was no reason for its existence.

Sayaka doubted that but had no grounds of which to refute it. She decided to remain quiet.

Standing in a circle, the singer looked at her assigned placed next to Makoto. It was almost as if the bear was mocking her for their altercation.

'Not that I'm surprised by it or anything.'

"The killer really is one of us, right?"

Makoto's question seemed to bring everyone into focus.

"Of course!"

Monokuma, for what it's worth, seemed to honestly want a fair trial. That couldn't happen if it lied about who the murderer was.

That thought did little to settle the pit in her stomach, however.

"Okay then… everyone close your eyes, and whoever did it, raise your hand!"

"Don't be a goddamn idiot" Mondo refuted Taka's suggestion. "Why the hell would they raise their hand?"

"How about you guys start with a case summary, hmm?"

Monokuma's voice interrupted the start of an argument, bringing the group back on track.

Sayaka closed her eyes as she listened to the statements go by.

Nonstop Debate:

"The victim was Junko Enoshima!" Taka's exuberant voice started.

"We already know that, you fucking moron. We're trying to discuss the situation surrounding her death, not the girl herself." Mondo grumbled.

"Alright, so we know who the victim is," Leon affirmed. "Is there anything else we should discuss?"

"How about the murder weapon then?" Aoi lead. "Enoshima-san was bleeding from the neck, right?"

"That's true." Hiro's face turned green. "The wound was pretty bad."

"Hmmm…" Celeste closed her eyes. "Was it from a knife perhaps?"

Sayaka's eyes widened. This was it!

"No, you've got that wrong!"

Everyone stopped speaking and turned towards the idol who blushed at being the center of attention. Coughing into her hand she began to elaborate.

"It couldn't have been a knife. The wound wasn't shaped like one."

Aoi blinked. "It wasn't…?"

"No, I don't think so anyway," Sayaka added. "Not only that, but there was no weapon of the sort in or around my room so-!"

A chuckle cut her off.

"To be honest, Maizono-san, I'm almost sad that I have to bring it up so early. I had wanted to save this piece of evidence for later to keep things interesting." Byakuya sighed as he shook his head. "Alas, if the opportunity presents itself I must take it."

Sayaka felt fear grip her throat.

"What are you talking about, Togami-san…?"

The heir grinned before he picked up something from the floor. What was-

Realization hit Sayaka like a truck as her eyes widened in shock.

"This kitchen knife was found in your dresser drawer." He continued a smug grin on his face. "Of course, there is no blood on it. You at least had the sense to wash that away. You must have planned to commit this crime directly before nighttime for that very reason." Byakuya concurred. "It gave you the ability to run into the least amount of people while also allowing for you to get rid of the blood. Also, as you said, the neck wound was a bit off. You more than likely dug around a bit to mess with the investigation." He bowed mockingly. "Well, am I right?"

'Why the hell didn't I put that stupid knife back the moment my plan fell through!?' Sayaka growled internally, her nails digging into her hand. 'I'm such an idiot!'

Granted, she had not expected anyone to go through her stuff as they did. This thought did little to ease her worries.

"Ne, Togami-kun," Chihiro spoke up. "Can you prove that the knife came from her room?"

Sayaka's complexion cleared slightly. There was a chance that-!

"Yes, I can," Byakuya said shortly. "Both Naegi and Kirigiri were in the room with me investigating. They can corroborate my story."

Kyoko closed her eyes. "He is correct."

Makoto turned away from the girl next to him. She could tell it hurt him to speak.

"He's right..." he agreed quietly.

"And that's that." Byakuya smirked. "The criminal for the first case was so blatantly obvious it's almost pathetic. Not only was the situation surrounding the crime outlined by Kirigiri earlier, but the murder weapon was found inside the crime scene." He shook his head mockingly. "We may as well move onto the conclusion at this point-"

"Wait!"

Everyone turned to Sayaka who had a panicked look on her face. She held up her hand as her mind stalled trying to think of a way out of the situation.

'There has to be a way to fix things, somehow…' She closed her eyes as she began thinking harder. Something her class may have not figured out yet?

It came to her in a rush.

"I got it!"

Finger pointed at Byakuya she spoke with confidence.

"We still haven't figured out the cause of death, yet. That could change things drastically-!"

"Classmate! What kind of question is that?" Taka cut her off. He looked annoyed. "I think the cause of death is quite obvious, is it not?"

"Yeah!" Leon shouted. "It's written right there in the file! There's no mistaking it. Don't lie to us, you did it, didn't you!?"

Sayaka felt her shrink in on herself. Standing up to animosity was not her strong suit.

Thankfully, her savior came from the most unlikely place.

"Personally, I think we should let her talk. It makes the game more fun when the culprit gets to struggle to the last breath. Don't you all agree?"

While Sayaka could not help but feel insulted from the progeny's insinuations she knew this was her chance.

"I'll show you all what you've been misinterpreting!"

Nonstop Debate:

"I guess that means we should read what the Monokuma File says huh…?" Hiro lead.

"O-of course," Toko muttered. "That mu-much should be obvious."

"So, what is it that killed her then?" Aoi asked confused.

"The cut on the back of her neck obviously," Mondo grunted. "It says it right here: 'A large gash was found on the back of the victims' head.' Seems pretty fucking clear-cut to me."

"No, that's wrong!"

Mondo turned towards Sayaka in surprise. The idol quickly held up her own copy of the Monokuma File.

"That part, from what I can tell, was written as a red herring of sorts. It was placed in order to try and distract us from looking at the other injuries. I believe that Enoshima-san died from something other than this."

"Pathetic," Byakuya growled, obviously unhappy that she had managed to find a contradiction. "It seems that I was wasting my time in giving you the chance to speak. It's clear to me that you'll just continue to lie your way through this case if we give you the chance to do so."

"No, I-!"

"Shut up. My patience is running thin." He turned to Monokuma. "You can move onto the vote now. I think the killer, in this case, is plenty clear-"

"Hold on Togami-san. There are still things about the situation that I find off."

The heir looked at Kyoko and narrowed his eyes.

"Things, you say? Like what."

"Like this."

Nonstop Debate:

"When exactly did this murder take place?" Kyoko opened.

"Ho-how is thi-this important to discuss?" Toko stuttered. "We al-already know i-it was that blue-haired bi-bimbo that did it!"

Celeste nodded. "I agree. Even if the cause of death was somehow different, going over things we already know as fact seems rather pointless to me."

"Maybe there is some merit in what Miss Kirigiri is saying, though?" Hifumi asked. "Do we even happen to know when Miss Enoshima was killed?"

"Seriously are you an idiot?" Leon scoffed. "It says right here in the Monokuma File: she was killed at 9:30 PM."

'I hear it!'

"No, you've got that wrong!"

Sayaka shook her head.

"Kuwata-kun, the Monokuma File never once states the time of death. For some reason, it was omitted. Instead, it only gives the time of which the body was found."

Byakuya looked mildly impressed by the deduction.

"Yes, that may be true…" the scion muttered. "However, it matters not. Even though it doesn't specify when exactly she was killed, the truth of the matter was that she was found in front of your room. Not only that, but you were spotted beside the body by both Asahina and Ogami."

'He's right.' Sayaka thought. 'Until I get my alibi cleared up, there is no way for me to prove that I didn't kill her. But how can I do that-?'

"What if she wasn't killed where we think she was?"

Kyoko's question was, again, succinct and to the point. It was also very confusing.

"Eh?" Mondo's voice rang out. "Not where we think? Her body was found in front of Maizono-san's room. Also, didn't you see all that blood? That shit can't just be picked up and moved elsewhere, you know."

"I concur," Byakuya replied with an eyebrow raised. "Where exactly do you propose she was killed at?"

Kyoko closed her eyes, calm as ever. "If we talk things over. I promise that all of you will understand things soon. This case is actually simple and the killer rather obvious. Once you piece everything together, that is." She sighed. "Something of which none of you are apparently capable of."

A few heads hung in abashment.

"So… what do we talk about?" Hina asked as she placed a finger to her chin in thought.

"Let's start with what we had found at the previously assumed 'crime scene'. We can branch off after." The silver-haired teen responded.

Sayaka furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

She had no idea what the mysterious girl was getting at.

Nonstop Debate:

"Now that you mention it, there really wasn't much at the crime scene really…" Leon started off.

"Yes, I found that odd as well. It was almost too clean, no real evidence on hand." Celeste agreed.

Sayaka blinked. "No evidence at all…?"

Byakuya shook his head. "Nothing significant, at any rate."

"So, what should we do?" Hiro panicked. "If there wasn't enough evidence to even point to someone then it was a perfect crime-!"

"No, you've got that wrong!"

Makoto hung his head. His eyes shadowed from his hair.

"It's not the perfect crime because…" he trailed off. "Because the culprit already revealed them self."

The words were spoken without much force. Nonetheless, it had garnered attention, catching everyone off-guard.

'Except Kirigiri-san.' Sayaka noted.

"So you know who the killer was too, Naegi-kun!?" Aoi asked excitedly. "Who is it?"

The boy hesitated. It was more accurate to say that he knew since before the trial began. A simple look around was all that was required, after all.

Admitting it however was a far more difficult challenge.

Sayaka, noticing his hesitance, grasped at the side of his jacket in reassurance. He recoiled on instinct. She forced down the rejection she felt and spoke quietly in a way only he would hear.

"You can do it Naegi-kun. Just believe in yourself, alright? I…" she looked deep into his eyes. "I believe in you completely."

Makoto looked at her for a few seconds; absorbing the sincerity in her expression. His face, previously conflicted, now looked to be at peace.

"Thank you, Maizono-san."

She smiled back at him widely.

"Anytime, Naegi-kun."

The moment over, Makoto turned back to the group with renewed confidence.

"In all honesty, Kirigiri-san and I had our suspicions early on." He admitted. "She told me to investigate other rooms while she and Togami-kun looked deeper into Maizono-san's room and the areas around it."

"Why didn't you say anything earlier dude!?" Leon shouted out incredulously.

"Yes, I'd quite like to know the same thing." Byakuya narrowed his eyes. "To what end did you hope to achieve by concealing evidence, let alone the name of the criminal!?"

"Would you really have listened to anything we said, Togami-san? I find that very hard to believe, personally."

Kyoko's question may have been directed towards the affluent progeny in particular, but it was clearly meant to be applied to everyone else present as well.

"There was a number of things which made Maizono-san appear guilty, as I had expressed before the trial even started." The silver-haired girl continued. "If we jumped the gun and brought this topic up back when she was being accused, would you have been as receptive as you are now?" She scoffed. "I think not."

Byakuya and Leon winced from the tone of voice, backing down. There was no use getting into an argument they knew they had already lost.

"Thanks, Kirigiri-san." Makoto smiled towards the girl. "As I was saying, I was told to investigate the other rooms as much as was possible. There was a good chance that the killer had attempted to divert our attention away from the scene of the crime. How did they do this? It's simple. They moved the body. It was done to cause us to reach a different conclusion."

"It… does sound plausible, I suppose. Especially given the lack of evidence at the scene," Celeste admitted. "So? Where do you believe the crime was actually orchestrated at?"

"The gymnasium."

Byakuya raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"The gymnasium?" He asked incredulously. "You do realize all of us were there this morning when Monokuma called us in? Surely we would have noticed something was off."

"No." Makoto shook his head. "The killer ensured that their evidence was well-hidden. In fact, the only reason that I found anything at all was because of Kirigiri-san's intuition."

Kyoko nodded. "Indeed. I concluded fairly early on that Enoshima-san's actual cause of death was from the bruises around her neck and not the cut on the base of her neck. This was more than likely added after the act in order to throw off our investigation. Maizono-san also reached the same conclusion earlier on in the trial, if you recall."

The idol blushed at the reminder. Though, inwardly she was frowning.

'This must have been what she meant when she said that she was going to need all the help she could get during the trial. She needed me to bring it up beforehand so that her theory became more plausible.'

It was an effective strategy.

"Right after realizing this, I sent Naegi-kun to investigate. I chose both the gymnasium as well as the A/V room. To me, these appeared the most likely to yield results."

"U-um Kirigiri-san?" Chihiro meekly raised her hand. "Why those two rooms in particular…?"

Kyoko considered the question. "It was due to the gash. While I admit it was deep enough to cause blood-loss, the extent of it was far too small for a knife. If anything, there is a good chance that said item was put in Maizono-san's drawer was added at some point in the investigation to throw us off."

Sayaka turned away at that. She was thankful Kyoko didn't bring up their previous confrontation. She was aware the mysterious girl knew more than she let on.

"That's all well and good," Byakuya relented. "But you still haven't explained what's in those rooms that could cause such a wound; let alone what the killing blow was."

Makoto decided to take over.

"It's simple really; those rooms happened to be the farthest away from the fake crime scene making us less likely to check them. More importantly, however, they each contained tables and equipment with very sharp edges. While you would certainly need great force to inflict major damage to someone with that, it would be possible if you were someone who possessed immense physical strength."

"Who exactly?" Byakuya asked, becoming impatient.

"Before that, I'd like to do one last thing. Let's go over everyone's alibis again."

"Now!?" Hiro exclaimed. "Couldn't the killer just lie and change their statements?"

Makoto shook his head. "No. We already know them from before, so changing your story at this stage would just worsen your case."

"Fine." Celeste smiled. "Let us discuss everybody's alibi's one last time then."

Nonstop Debate:

"I don't really know how this will advance us any further…" Chihiro admitted. "Most of us were still in our rooms and we only knew a body had been found after we had been gathered by Asahina-san and Oogami-san."

"That's not entirely true, Miss Fujisaki." Hifumi rebutted. "A good amount of us were still in bed before the body discovery announcement woke us up. We were not visited by either Asahina-san or Oogami-san."

"Yes, quite." Celeste agreed. "Though I don't feel like this has any bearing on the case."

"Probably not." Hifumi relented.

"Sakura and I were together for quite a while..." Hina frowned as she put a finger to her chin. "I waved her over and then we spent our time in the cafeteria eating some snacks. She put some into a bag she was carrying. Not long after, we heard Maizono-san scream so we ran out to find her."

Mondo grunted. "This fucking sucks. Aside from those two, we were all still in our rooms when the body was found. It could have been anyone."

Sayaka frowned. "Does that mean that no one has an alibi then-?"

"You've got that wrong!"

Everyone stopped their discussion as Makoto narrowed his eyes.

"You're all looking at things the wrong way. It's not that the culprit lacks an alibi. Instead, the culprit is one of the only people who has one."

"What do you mean, Naegi-kun…?"

His lips were in a tight line.

"It means that our discussion right then just solidified the culprit's guilt." He pointed his finger towards the accused.

A scream filled the room.

Class Trial: Intermission


	5. Chapter 4: Smile at Hope After Despair

Chapter 4 – Smile at Hope After Despair

"Sakura-san. You're the culprit."

There was a moment of silence, then-

"WHAT!?"

Hina's voice rang from across the gallery as everyone turned their attention to the giant.

Sakura, to her credit, did not outwardly react when accused.

"Where exactly is this coming from Naegi-kun?" she frowned. "To my knowledge, hardly any evidence has been presented thus far which could be used to indict to me."

Makoto shook his head. "No. I'm sorry to say but proof of your involvement has already been established." He held up a document. "It's all thanks to this."

'The Monokuma File…?' Sayaka thought in confusion.

"What does that show, Naegi-kun?" Sakura asked. "I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific."

He swiped through the information, before pointing to two separate entries listed in two different locations.

"Both the time of death as well as the circumstances leading up to her death are notably absent from this." He frowned. "Of course, I can't know this for sure; but I assume this is not the norm?" his question was rhetorical. Judging by his expression he already knew the answer.

Monokuma jumped excitedly. "Yes, yes! You're absolutely right, Naegi-kun!" He began chuckling. "Upupupu it's just in this case giving that information away would have led to far too fast a conclusion. Not that this wasn't already plenty easy, anyway!"

Makoto hung his head.

"I see." He muttered. "That proves it then…"

He almost looked as if he wanted to be wrong. It was as if the conclusion he reached was far too horrific to be uttered aloud. Sayaka wanted desperately to reach over and grasp his hand. Hug him, or something. Still, she kept her hands to herself; not sure how he'd react to physical contact at the moment.

"Naegi-kun, you're not making any sense!" Hina yelled, clearly desperate. "How does that prove Sakura did it!? You haven't explained anything!"

The brown-haired boy looked conflicted. Sayaka could tell this was unlikely to change anytime soon. Should she help him somehow-?

"You can do it, Naegi-kun." Kyoko's soft voice uttered from the other side of the courtroom. "You already know the answer, I know you do. You just have to prove it."

'Again!?'

Sayaka bit down the intense rush of jealousy that flew through her body. Though, it took a lot out of her. Why was he listening to the advice of this girl so intently?

'Better her than you, miss "perfect".' The idol shook her head. This seriously was not the time.

Makoto spoke up, his determination returning.

"I'm sorry Hina, Sakura-san. Proof has already been established pointing towards your guilt earlier on in this trial."

Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"Go on then, Naegi-kun. Explain your findings to us."

The boy nodded his head.

"Recall when we gave our alibi's."

Flashback:

"Sakura and I were together for quite a while." Hina frowned as she put a finger to her chin. "I waved her over and then we spent our time in the cafeteria eating some snacks. She put some into a bag she was carrying. Not long after, we heard Maizono-san scream so we ran out to find her."

"Hina said something interesting there." He continued. "She 'waved' Sakura-san over and then they spent some time together. This implies that they had not been together the entire time and that Sakura-san was out of her room during this timeframe. Additionally, the perpetrator in this case had to have been physically strong. Sakura-san, of course, is the strongest amongst us."

"Hang on! Where are you going with this!?" Hina cut in. "If anything, that means that I am just as probable to be the killer. I'm physically strong too, you know!"

The boy looked up in surprise at the sudden outburst from Hina. Sakura turned to her friend to calm her down but the swimmer ignored it.

Makoto grimaced.

"Hina… you have to let me explain things, alright…?" He spoke softly in an attempt to placate her. "Judging by everyone's alibi's it could not have been anyone else. While no one's accounts can be completely confirmed, you and Sakura-san were the only people Maizono-san noticed when she found the body. Additionally, only Sakura-san, Oowada-kun and Ishimaru-kun would have been strong enough to pull something like this off."

"I see," Byakuya muttered. "Hidden in plain sight. Very strong offensive, I must admit."

Hina shook her head in denial.

"NO! That doesn't prove anything!" She switched targets before pointing her finger at the idol. "Haven't you seen how out of it she has been lately? It's entirely possible that she just didn't notice someone slip by her into their room!"

Sayaka bit her lip to hold back the rebuttal she felt rising to the surface. As much as she wanted to, she knew it would be fruitless.

There was reason to doubt her after all.

Makoto shook his head solemnly. "No. While I can't deny the fact that Maizono-san may have missed someone it does not add up with the real crime scene."

"Real crime scene?" Celeste delicately raised an eyebrow. "You mean the gymnasium correct? You referred to it as such earlier."

"Yeah. There in the corner of the room hidden underneath some of the platforms lay a piece of evidence the killer couldn't get rid of." He took a deep breath. "Irrefutable evidence that will prove once and for all that Sakura-san is the killer."

Hina shook her head adamantly.

"No, no, no! There is nothing like that. I refuse to believe it!"

Reaching behind him Makoto picked something up which looked strikingly familiar to Sayaka.

Her eyes widened in realization.

Flashback:

Yelling out triumphantly, she jumped as Makoto appeared out of nowhere. It looked as if he was walking from the other side of the school back towards her room.

What…?

'Is that a bloody bandage in his hand…?'

Holding up the aforementioned piece of cloth Makoto elaborated.

"This is the piece of evidence which will prove Sakura-san's guilt."

Hina looked unconvinced.

"A strip of white cloth with blood on it? What exactly does that 'prove'?"

"This was found surrounded by a number of scuff marks and scratches. Admittedly, at the moment, I am unsure what these originated from, but its unimportant. Instead, recall if you will, the biggest problem you guys had in accepting that the crime scene was elsewhere."

"I-it was the blood. Right, Naegi-kun?"

Makoto nodded at the programmer. Showing the bloody cloth in greater detail, Kyoko decided to continue the explanation.

"This, as Naegi-kun said, was found in the gym. It, from what I can tell, had been used as a means of wiping up the blood left behind after fabricating the wound on Enoshima-san's neck." Kyoko spoke, each word meticulous in use. "Of course, this was not ideal and the killer had no means of taking such a bloody cloth with them; as it would simply mark their trail away from the real crime scene. There were at least two strips used during this crime. One was used as a make-shift means of hemorrhaging the wound. While not ideal, it served its purpose. The culprit was obviously strong enough to not only carry the body from one place to another but to also keep the wound closed while doing it."

Hina felt ill the longer the explanation went on. Kyoko continued, undeterred.

"Of course, I can assure you that none of us, barre possibly Oowada-kun and Ishimaru-kun could have accomplished such a feat. However, aside from this possibility, there is nothing concrete pointing to them as potential suspects." She paused, letting her words sink in. "The way the culprit disposed of this first piece of cloth is simple. After dropping the body off, they just had to go into their own room. We only ever searched Maizono-san's living quarters as we felt it was unnecessary at the time."

The detective stopped speaking, letting Makoto take over.

"This also allowed them the chance to wash their hands clean of the blood. It successfully put one of the two cloths out of the way. Unfortunately for the killer, however, after doing this, they still had to go back to retrieve the other one. Taking the garbage bag from the bin in her room to do so." He looked over at Hina. "This is where she ran into a problem. You."

The swimmer lost her breath for a moment.

"Me…?"

"She obviously didn't expect anyone to be up at such a late hour; the nighttime curfew having been put into place a few days ago." He winced. "She had to improvise. More than likely diverting your attention into thinking she merely wanted to eat. At the time, you would have had no reason to doubt her words but it was, in fact, a lie."

The girl now had tears running down her face. Sakura looked ashamed.

"Sakura… lied to me…?"

Makoto flinched at that but continued on.

"Sakura-san needed the bag as a means of containing the blood from the drenched cloth. My guess is that this crime was not pre-meditated and instead happened on a whim. It's because of this that she did not think ahead: not having anything on her person to keep her crime a secret." He looked away. "This whole thing was based off a bunch of uncertainties and coincidences."

Hina grabbed the podium to stay standing.

"But… but there is still no direct proof showing that Sakura was the one who did it!" she waved her arms wildly around as she looked at everyone. "Any of us could have done it. That white cloth could have been from any of us."

By now, everyone in the room had reached a conclusion. Deep down, she had too.

Makoto just had to be the one to convince her.

"Hina… take one look at Sakura-san's arms, and the bandages strewn across them." The swimmer's eyes widened in stunned realization. "I am confident that if we compare this cloth found at the crime scene with the ones she is currently wearing that we will-"

"You don't have to do that, Naegi-kun."

Sakura interrupted. He looked away.

"So, it's true then…?"

"Yes." She confessed.

"I killed her. I killed Enoshima-san."

Trial Complete:

There was silence as Monokuma called for voting time. So many questions were left unanswered. What was the true cause of death? For that matter, why had she done it in the first place? Sakura's admittance caused a general numbness amongst the participants. Even those who had known the culprit far ahead of time still felt ill as they were forced to call her name forward.

Still, it did not change the fact that they were correct.

"WOOHOO!" Monokuma yelled out excitedly. "You guys were absolutely correct! The bastard who offed Junko Enoshima was none other than Sakura Oogami!"

He sighed dramatically.

"You got the traitor killed off in the first round. It's almost sad, really."

Traitor…?

Sayaka looked at the martial artist with a mixture of confusion and anger on her face. Did that mean she was-

"It is not what you all think, I assure you," Sakura spoke calming people's nerves. "I was forced into being the mastermind's mole due to personal reasons. My… my dojo and all the people in it are being held captive. I was told the only way they could live was if I complied with their requests; including being the first to commit murder."

The fighter clenched her fist in anger. Releasing it she took a deep breath and continued.

"Of course, initially I planned on killing myself. It would have been a last resort but one I was willing to do if it came down to it."

"Eventually though you broke down and decided to kill someone else?" Byakuya sneered. "Not that I expected any different from a traitor."

Hina looked ready to run over and punch him but Sakura shook her head.

"No, Hina. Don't be so quick to anger. He is justified in his reasoning, even if it is incorrect."

Kyoko decided now would be the time to interject. "Sakura-san, I noticed during the trial that you never once denied any accusations; nor did you add anything to the discussion until you were addressed. It was almost as if you wanted us to arrive at this conclusion."

The ultimate chuckled.

"Astute observation, Kirigiri-san. You are most correct."

That surprised some people.

Byakuya, most of all.

"What!? What are you going on about, that's not possible!"

"Why not?" Sakura cut him off. "What's so impossible about it?"

"It just…" he sputtered. "Self-sacrifice to that magnitude isn't normal-"

"It is when a person is strong enough." Kyoko finished. "And in this case, she most certainly was."

The scion shook his head in denial. "N-no. She is only saying that now to save face. We have no idea how things would have gone had you not built such a strong case against her."

"I'm not here to convince you, either way, Togami-kun." Kyoko relented. "I'm just here to give my thoughts on the facts we've been given."

He turned away and grumbled. The silver-haired girl ignored him.

"Please, continue."

"Thank you, Kirigiri-san. As I already stated before, the moment I woke up here, it was my fate to commit murder. I was never given a choice. So, when it eventually happened, I was resigned to it. As if the situation was expected." Her regret was palpable. "Unfortunately, I was unable to admit to the crime, as I intended. As, right after our altercation, Monokuma showed up and gave me rather explicit instructions. How to hide my crime, set up the fake scene, and so on. This included me pinning the crime on Maizono-san, who seemed under the weather as of late. Of course, he also forbade me from giving this information up, but now that no longer matters." She bowed her head. "I hope you all can accept my apology. Especially you, Maizono-san."

Sayaka shook her head. "It wasn't your fault Oogami-san. I'm sorry that we couldn't have helped you in another way."

Sakura smiled in thanks before looking over to Makoto. "Naegi-kun, you mentioned the scuff marks around the bloodied cloth correct?"

"Yeah…" he responded. "That's something I never figured out. What was that?"

"Ah, I see. Well, in actuality, Naegi-kun, the two of us fought." Sakura admitted. Everyone looked at her surprised.

"You actually battled the Ultimate Fashionista, of all people?" Leon gaped. "What was she supposed to do? Strike poses until you died?"

Sakura chuckled.

"No. To be honest, the reason I was in the gymnasium in the first place was because I had called her there. I wished to test something."

"Test something?" Sayaka prodded, confusedly.

"Yes." The martial artist confirmed. "Do you recall the incident at the cafeteria this morning? Ishimaru-san tripped and almost spilled food on her."

"The chick dodged it though, right?"

Sakura nodded at Mondo. "Yes, she did. However, it was the speed at which she had done so, that seemed so unnatural to me."

Nobody spoke, intrigued by the story. Out of the corner of her eye, Sayaka noticed Monokuma's paw clench. Was he upset over something?

"So that is why I called her to the gym. I wished to confront her about it. However, what started off as a simple conversation quickly devolved into a fight when she attacked me."

"SHE ATTACKED YOU!?" Hiro yelled. For once, however, his exuberant behavior was justified.

"Very effectively, I might add. Enoshima-san was certainly far stronger than how she initially appeared. In fighting ability, she almost rivaled me." She shrugged. "I soon tried to subdue her by holding her down but she fought back, quite spastically. She seemed on the verge of mental collapse as if she had to beat me for one reason or another. I'm unsure as to why."

Nobody spoke.

As the fight progressed, I saw my opportunity to hold her down. I attempted to do so with as little force as possible but her struggling saw to her end. I choked her to death." Sakura growled. "It was never my intention. I think you know that by now."

Most nodded.

"Thank you. I'm so glad." She smiled softly. "I hope that this explanation behind my motivations and the injuries on her body were sufficient, Kirigiri-san? The cut was from forcing her neck onto a spare table. The various abrasions were from our fight and the death blow was from my accidental choking."

"Thank you, Sakura-san. It was indeed sufficient." Kyoko nodded once. Her eyes then narrowed. "You look as if you wished to add something more, though. What is it?"

Sakura paused, choosing her words carefully. "It's just..." she trailed off, "as I said before, Enoshima-san was strong. Incredibly so. It was almost as though she were trained in a manner similar to-"

"Alright, times up! I'm gonna stop you right there. Everyone would get really upset if you guys learned everything before the story really got going!"

"What do you mean by that?" Kyoko asked eyes narrowed. "Who is this everyone you're referring to?"

The bear ignored her.

"UPUPUPUPU! Who cares about that now!? It's Punishment Time!"

Hina shook her head rapidly.

"No! Not execution! Please don't-!"

"No arguing!" He interrupted gleefully. "Society demands retribution for such horrible actions and now she must pay the price!"

Hina was sobbing as Sakura attempted to calm her down.

"Plus, Sakura ended up being the big bad mole for me, the mastermind! Why do you even care what happens to her!? You should all hate and berate her for it-!"

"NO, THAT'S WRONG!" Makoto yelled. "Sakura-san is our friend. She made a mistake but that is no reason for us to look back at her in such an awful manner. We just have to work together to get out of here. We can't forget that our true enemy in all of this is not each other but you!"

Monokuma mumbled something under his breath as Sakura smiled at the short teenager.

"Thank you, Naegi-kun. I feel like I'm leaving things in capable hands."

He gave her the best smile he could in the situation.

No more words were shared, however.

"Well, whatever; getting back on track then! I've got a very special punishment for the Ultimate Martial Artist, Sakura Oogami!"

Gently pushing Hina out of her arms, the tall woman closed her eyes and breathed out.

"IT'S PUNISHMENT TIME!"

Game Over!

Sakura has been found guilty:

Time for the Punishment!

Everyone watched with baited breaths as the ceiling opened up. A crane swooped down and grasped her by the shoulders before throwing her down into what looked to be an open field. Looking around the area in confusion, a group of alien-like creatures suddenly popped up ready to strike.

Realizing what she had to do, the martial artist quickly got into a stance, beckoning the creatures to try and kill her, if they could.

The fight waged on as the hulking Ultimate brought down waves of enemies; fatigue starting to set in. It was in this moment, that the world around her started to shrink. The fake backdrop beginning to approach her with the intention to crush her whole.

She refused to go down without a fight, however.

Taking as many of the bizarre creatures with her as she could, Sakura continued to fight in spite of her incredible weariness and numerous injuries. By now the walls and ceiling of the imaginary field were pressing down on her.

There was no one left but her.

She sat on the ground; exhausted but satisfied, a smile upon her face.

Her work was done.

"Goodbye, Kenshiro… and thank you."

The world closed in around her.

Then there was nothing but red.

Execution Complete:

'This… this can't be real.'

Sayaka's eyes were opened wide as she stared in horror at the monitor in the front of the room. The so-called 'punishment' was something far too graphic to describe. The amount of blood… the idol forgot the human body even held so much of it. She didn't know what to feel. This intense emptiness, a feeling of death without remorse.

Was this despair?

There was no other word to describe it in her mind. It was almost as if all hope she had felt after Makoto's words had completely fled her system, its polar opposite now all that was left.

"SAKURAAAAA!"

Hina's wails echoed through the halls of the courtroom causing even the most hardened of people to wince from the emotion present.

Sayaka held her head in her hands as the weight of the situation began to press down on her.

'Would that have happened to everyone had I succeeded in my plan…?'

Standing off to the side far away from the rest of the group, she ignored Monokuma's taunting voice. The war in her own mind taking precedence over it.

'Of course, it would have!' the voice gleefully stated. 'A fitting execution for a girl whose whole life is her job. Sacrifices have to be made, after all!'

Sayaka felt too drained to argue against it. Ignoring the truth in its arguments.

She was numbly aware of the group passing her by as they headed back upstairs. Following behind with a vacant look in her eyes she felt the elevator ascend as they reached the top.

No one said a word as they returned to their respective bedrooms. Expressions were a mixture of anger, confusion, and anguish. A select few had their faces schooled but there was no denying they were still affected by the events they went through.

Laying on her bed, Sayaka flinched as her inner thoughts continued to berate her for her decisions. For her failures. For everything.

"I can't do this anymore…" she whispered.

She was going insane.

She needed help.

She wouldn't get any.

She should just get rid of the pain now.

She-

There was a knock on the door.

Sayaka froze at the sound. Answering it seemed to be a non-option at the moment. The idol was a mess, not only mentally but also physically. Normally this would have bothered her greatly, and it still did to an extent. But considering how everyone looked at the end of the trial, she supposed vanity was not appropriate at the moment.

Opening the door slightly, Sayaka spoke hoarsely.

"Who is it…?"

There was a pause.

"Maizono-san…? Can I talk to you for a bit…?"

Makoto peaked through the small opening in the door frame. He looked just as deadened as she was.

"O-oh?" Sayaka looked stunned for a second. "Of course, Naegi-kun. Come in." she moved aside quickly, letting him pass. "What is it…?"

The Luckster put his head down for a moment. When he spoke, it was so quiet she could just barely hear.

"I wanted to talk about... us, and what happened before."

Sayaka felt her breath hitch.

"Oh…"

He turned away, collecting his thoughts. In retrospect, maybe he should have worded things better, but he was struggling to speak at all.

"I just… I just wanted to ask you a few things, if that's alright."

Time seemed to freeze for the idol. She felt so many emotions build up in unison that she had trouble dealing with any of them.

"Why…?" and so she settled with a single word question which summarized all of them at once.

He looked as if he had expected such a question.

"It took me a few days, admittedly. I honestly needed the space to think about things." He spoke softly. "But after today, it's become apparent that we don't have that luxury. Time isn't a given in here, after all so…" He turned towards her, his expression serious. "You were going to murder someone, weren't you? I can tell it wasn't me, that's why you were so shocked when I was the one who showed up, right?"

Sayaka gathered from his words that he had forgotten her rushed apology to a certain athlete.

"Yes, I was." She admitted.

Makoto closed his eyes.

"I see. Are you planning on doing something like that, again?"

The idol feverishly shook her head.

"No! No… I wouldn't… Not anymore."

Makoto searched her face for any form of notable deceit. Of course, he knew by now that she was excellent at masking her emotions but he felt at the current moment that he was speaking to the 'real Sayaka'.

Whoever that was.

"Alright then. I'll believe you."

Those words meant a lot in her situation. It gave her hope that there was a chance for redemption.

"The reason I visited you that night was because I wanted to check on you. It was just… a feeling I got." He elaborated; expression conflicted. "I was incredibly worried about you, and I wanted to make sure you were okay." The boy involuntarily flinched at the guilt-ridden expression adorning her face. "Though," he continued "as strange as it is, I honestly don't think I'm angry over you stabbing me."

Makoto chuckled at her shocked expression.

"I won't deny that it hurt like hell… still does. Somehow though, you missed anything important. I guess I really am lucky, huh?"

She smiled sadly at him, choosing not to speak.

So, Makoto did instead.

"There was one more thing I wanted to know... it's the main reason I'm here, actually."

Gripping his arm, he looked away from her, suddenly anxious.

"You were planning to pin your murder on me, right?" Sayaka could only nod in shame. He felt something catch in his throat. "I thought so. Then… does that mean that you were using me the whole time? It makes me feel like you never cared for me at all-"

"NO!"

Makoto jumped from the sudden shout. It surprised him that such an ordinarily docile girl was capable of something so loud. She hadn't even been this expressive during the trial!

Fighting down a rising blush from the unintentional raise in volume, she looked down.

"I care about you a lot Naegi-kun. I always have, maybe more than I had even considered at the time." Her fingers began fidgeting slightly as she tried to force out more words. "The last few days were so hard. I honestly didn't think I would make it through them without you. I almost didn't. And tonight, I almost…"

She turned her head to the side, shame shining in her eyes.

"I can't even begin to express how sorry I am Naegi-kun. I know nothing I say will ever be enough but…" she hung her head, trying and failing to keep emotion from showing. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry Naegi-kun. I won't do anything like this again, I promise. Just… please talk to me again. I miss you so much…"

The idol felt her mask cracking as she poured out her heart in a manner she could not remember doing in years. She missed him. By God, did she miss him. This whole situation was ruining her and she couldn't get through it without him. Her heart was racing fast and the silence was killing her.

"I forgive you, Maizono-san."

She felt her heart stop for a moment before her body reset itself. Hesitantly raising her head, she was faced with the most tender smile she had ever seen. It was so pure, so loving.

So, perfect.

"I can't claim to understand completely what drove you to consider murder… but I know that for someone as ordinarily sweet as you there must have been a very good reason for it." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I know that we don't know each other well yet. I'm honestly unsure that before now I had even met the 'real you', but I still feel I can trust you. I won't force you to tell me what you saw in that video but just please learn to rely on me as a friend, alright? We can get through this together, without murder. I promise you."

Her mouth felt dry. "Naegi-kun…"

"Also." He chuckled. "You did promise to be my assistant, right? Well, I think you did a wonderful job of that today. Kirigiri-san and I never would have been able to prove anything had it not been for you so… thank you."

She could not hold back any longer and launched herself at him, crying into his shirt in a way similar to how she did on that night. This time, however, nothing was faked. She needed comfort and the boy in front of her was the only one she would accept it from. Holding onto him tightly as if he were her lifeline Sayaka's breath shook as Makoto circled his arms around her waist hugging her back.

They stayed that way for a while, ignoring the world around them as her tears finally subsided.

Sayaka smiled. It was the first true smile she could remember expressing in what felt like forever. She would trade anything in the world for the sheer relief, the comfort, and the love she felt in this one moment.

"Ne, Maizono-san? Are you feeling better now?

The idol reluctantly tore herself away from his chest and nodded slowly. She had a slight blush on her face which looked far brighter due to her pale complexion

Makoto couldn't help but chuckle at her.

Sayaka giggled back at him.

There was finally silence in her mind. No voices, no conflicting emotions, just peace.

Everything was good.

"Ah, Naegi-kun…?"

He cocked his head to the side.

"Yeah, what's up?"

She looked concerned for a moment, as if unsure about continuing.

'I really want to ask him about his new-found friendship with Kirigiri-san but…' she bit her tongue in an attempt to curb her jealousy.

No, that was unfair on the boy in front of her and she would not risk jeopardizing things as it stood.

There was still something else she wished to clear up, after all.

"It's just…" she trailed off. "I wanted you to know that I never would have tried anything had I-"

"Known about the trial rules, I know." He smiled, understandingly. "I don't think you're the type of person that would sacrifice everyone here for your own ambitions, let alone your friends."

She stared at him, a radiant smile breaking out across her face. He really was the purest soul she had ever met.

That's when realization struck.

"Wait, how did you know what I was going to say?"

His face turned serious.

"I'm psychic."

Sayaka blinked.

"Huh?"

"Kidding…" he smiled. "I just have pretty good intuition."

To Survive: End.

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Side Note: Sakura's execution in this chapter, as bizarre as it may be, was actually the official unused execution written in a handbook about the game. I tried my best to visualize it and write it out but idk… hope it wasn't too sloppy! Also gonna be busy for the next few weeks but wanted this up before that happens! Editing late at night without a beta-reader is rough... Ouch. Please criticize fairly lol.

IMPORTANT UPDATE NOTE: This marks the end of the first arc of the story! Hooray! :D. Every time this fic goes through an arc it'll be a while before we go back to the regularly scheduled once-a-week updates. I'm unsure how long it'll be so don't ask x) but I'll try to keep trucking along as fast as I can! As compensation, this chapter was about twice as long as the others so I hope you enjoyed it, and this arc as a whole. I'm proud of it:). Let me know what you think! If this gets a good response then it'll motivate me to update faster!


	6. Intermission I - The Lucky Side

Two Days Ago:

Blurry brown eyes adjusted to the world around them. His mind hazy from a lack of sleep, Makoto put a hand to his forehead to alleviate the oncoming headache.

"Ngh… what happened…?"

The teen moaned out loud as he tossed and turned in bed. A moment later he shot up, memories of the previous night filtering through his mind. Biting back a scream of pain from the jarring movement he groped at his shoulder.

'That's right. Maizono-san attacked me last night…'

The boy tenderly rubbed his wound as he began thinking over the situation. He knew what she did was not right, it was horrifying. The fact that he was even taking things as matter of fact as he was, could also not be considered normal. He was too tired to care however.

Taking a peak over the side of the bed he frowned at the idol currently sleeping on the ground.

What was he supposed to say to her…?

A minute later, and with a shake of the head he got out of bed. Grabbing his keys from the bedside table he left to go to Sayaka's room.

Maybe a shower would help clear his mind on the matter.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto sighed as the hot water hit his skin.

"That feels good…"

Showering was always one of Makoto's favorite things. Standing under the warm water he could almost feel his worries washing away down the drain.

Almost.

'Maizono-san…'

The idol's actions were a shock to the lucky student. The more he thought on it, the more he couldn't deny her intent. It was clear. She meant to murder one of their classmates. It hurt him to know that someone so nice could do something so awful.

'Why did you feel you had to do this…?'

The moment he was struck, replayed in his mind. The desperation, the unadulterated despair in her eyes; empty and lifeless. That image in itself hurt more than the injury he was currently tending to under the water.

"Gah! This still stings, though."

He looked over at the surprisingly well-done stitching. Tracing a finger down the mark his eyes watered.

'Why did she do that to me…?'

It was all so sudden, he had no time to process any of it. The only thing that he was certain of, was that he didn't know her as well as he thought he had.

"I guess if it's any consolation, she didn't seem to want me dead specifically."

Though that brought on a realization that somehow felt even worse.

"She tried to frame me then, huh." his tone was mirthless. "I feel like a fool for being such an easy target like that."

Makoto wanted to look at things differently, he really did, but no other conclusion made sense. She had used him, through and through.

It hurt more than he thought possible.

He banged his fist on the shower wall.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now…"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto got himself dressed, making sure to not aggravate his wound in the process. He didn't have any form of gauze on-hand so he could only hope to avoid infection. Shrugging his jacket on he left his room as quickly as he could, heading towards the cafeteria long before the others would ordinarily arrive.

He wasn't wrong. Only Taka, Hina, Chihiro, Sakura and surprisingly Junko were present. Aside from the latter he would have put them all in the 'model high schooler' category.

"Hello Makoto, and good morning!" Taka exclaimed, loudly. "Can you believe it? I was the very first one to arrive this morning!"

Makoto sweat-dropped. He'd be more surprised if there anyone here didn't believe it. Returning greetings to the rest of them he grabbed a single piece of toast; a lack of appetite on account of being stabbed.

Not that he ever ate much anyway.

"Ne, Naegi-kun! Come join me over here!"

Junko's excitable voice caught his attention. He smiled slightly at the happy-go-lucky model and walked over to her. Sitting beside her, he blushed as the girl examined him rather closely.

"Wh-what is it?"

She leaned forward, too close for his liking, and began searching his face for something.

"Did something happen, Naegi-kun? You seem a bit off…"

He felt his breath catch in his throat. Did she know? No, that's not possible. True he may have walked a little sluggishly but that was no reason to suspect him of being injured, was it?

"No, no, nothing's wrong." He laughed weakly. "Sorry, I just had a long night last night."

Something shone in the girl's eyes in that one moment. Was that recognition? She sat back down too quick to consider it further.

"Eh, I guess I can believe it." She shrugged. "More importantly are you just gonna have some toast? I know you're thin but hell even I'm having a bit more to eat than that. You'll stay puny at this rate, shorty."

Makoto blushed.

"I'm just not hungry is all. Plus, I don't usually eat much for breakfast."

"Whattttt!?" She yelled out as if offended. "But it's the most important meal of the day, Naegi-kun! Why would you skip it?"

The boy was about to backtrack on his words before he saw her grin. It looked as if the girl was just trying to make him smile.

"Thank you, Enoshima-san. I appreciate it."

She blinked at him as if not expecting such a reaction. A light pink colour dusted her cheeks she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.

"He-hey. Don't say things like that. It should be illegal to be so cute."

He didn't know how to respond to that. Instead, he looked up and saw the majority of his classmates begin to pool in. One girl in particular caught his attention. At this point in time he had only talked to her once, but he felt… secure, when she was around. So maybe he should call her over?

"Ne, Kirigiri-san? Would you like to join us for some food?"

The quiet girl looked startled, as if not expecting to be invited. Shaking the surprise off she approached the table slowly and sat next to the Lucky student.

"Good morning." She spoke softly.

Makoto smiled at her. "Morning, sleep well?"

Taking a bite out of her cereal she mulled over the question. "Yes, I did. Thank you for asking."

"That's good."

"…"

…

Makoto sweat-dropped. 'This is awkward…'

Thankfully Junko sensed the situation and stepped in. "So, Kirigiri-san…" she began, leaning forward, "I've been wondering something for a while now."

"Hm…?" Kyoko raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Wellllll you haven't told us your talent yet, right…?" The rhetorical question went unanswered. "That's fine, of course, I'm sure you have your reasons, but how about you tell us some of your hobbies?"

Kyoko blinked. "My hobbies…?"

"Yeah!" Junko grinned. "You must have something you like to do?"

The silver-haired girl considered it. Did she have something she particularly enjoyed doing?

"Whether I do or don't," she began slowly, "you shouldn't expect me to give up information so freely-"

"Yeesh, Kirigiri-san you don't need to take everything so seriously." She sighed. "You know, I bet you're secretly a cinephile who gets off on acting like a Saturday night cop or something. It's okay. You can admit it, I won't judge."

Kyoko flushed a bright red at the insinuation, a comeback evading her. Makoto just gaped.

"Hmm, let's see here then…" Junko muttered, pointedly ignoring their reactions. "Ah!" she suddenly exclaimed. "I know! Aside from the obvious of modelling, I personally enjoy sporting activities, specifically gymnastics."

"Really?" Makoto prodded, interested.

"Yep!" she exclaimed, sounding the 'p'. "I've loved doing that type of stuff ever since I was just a little girl." The fashionista paused before pointing at the Luckster. "Now you, cutie. What do you like to do for fun?"

Makoto frowned. "I'm pretty boring honestly. I like playing video games, reading manga with my sister and listening to music. Of those things I usually like whatever is trending at that current moment, so I guess you could say my tastes sway easily."

"Mouuuu," Junko moaned. "You could at least make yourself sound somewhat intriguing like miss mysterious over here."

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as Kyoko narrowed her eyes at the insinuation. "Ah, sorry, Enoshima-san." Makoto responded.

"Well, whatever," the extrovert continued on, "now it's your turn little miss edge."

Kyoko fought the urge to scowl.

"Fine." She relented. "I enjoy studying fossils, and the like. Looking into things that people don't know the answers to has always been a favorite past time of mine. I also enjoy taking pictures of said items. Happy?"

Junko put her hands up in surrender. "Yes, yes. I'm happy. Not the most… normal of hobbies, I'll admit, but that's fine."

"You study fossils…?"

Kyoko raised an eyebrow.

"Among other things. Why?"

Makoto smiled. "No reason. I just think it's cool that you do that! You must be quite knowledgeable to be able to get anything from it."

Against her will, Kyoko's cheeks lightly dusted pink. She recovered quickly, however.

"I… suppose so. I've been told I am, anyway." She admitted. "Since we're asking questions though, I have one for you Naegi-kun."

He blinked. Both at the statement and the honorific suddenly attached to it. He didn't push, however.

"Alright…? What is it?"

"I was just wondering, where is Maizono-san?" she questioned. "I almost always see you two together. In fact, since the first day ended, I don't think I have seen you apart until now."

Makoto couldn't hide the wince. Neither girl missed it.

"What is it, Naegi-kun?"

Junko's voice was soft. Far softer than he had ever heard from her before.

"Did something happen…?"

He didn't answer. He couldn't answer. His chest felt like lead and he shook his head in denial. It was a weak rebuttal that neither girl bought, but it served to at least push them off his case.

"Well don't look now Naegi-kun, but she's coming over here now."

What-

"Naegi-kun!"

Makoto's face went blank and he shut down internally. As Sayaka began to walk over, Kyoko grabbed the Lucksters wrist.

"Naegi-kun," she whispered. "don't worry. Just stay calm and force a smile. I know you can do it."

Easier said than done. In the seconds leading up to the pop sensation reaching the table, Junko looked at Kyoko; a silent agreement happening between them.

"So Naegi-kun," the model forced a grin on her face, "got any embarrassing stories to share? I bet your childhood is just full of them."

"N-no!" he vehemently denied.

"No?" Junko mocked. "Nothing? To me, you seem like the kind of kid that would pee his pants long past the norm."

Immediately his face lit up in a blush. Kyoko and Junko chuckled at his innocent expression. An expression that did a complete 180 the moment Sayaka decided to try and grab his attention. The moment she poked him, Kyoko's face became cold, and Junko's murderous. Hard to detect, and only there for a second, but Sayaka still saw it.

Makoto didn't.

Making a haphazard excuse to leave the table, the two girls nodded at him and smiled, letting him retreat. If the singer was going to be so insistent then there was no sense in keeping him around.

"No."

Kyoko read the expression on Sayaka's face like a book. It wasn't hard to figure out, to be fair. The girl generally hid her true intentions well, but right now her heart was being worn on her sleeve.

She would take advantage of that.

"I don't know what you did," Kyoko ignored the singer's startled expression, "but you need to stay away for now."

Makoto was terrified of facing the girl, that much was clear. That was all she needed to know, for the moment.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Kirigiri-san."

"Alright." Kyoko hedged. "Well, if that's the case, then mind telling me why Naegi-kun didn't respond to you?"

"No." Sayaka turned away and bit her lip. "He was probably too engrossed in your conversation."

The silver-haired girl resisted the urge to sigh. She was getting nowhere and was far too tired to continue this line of questioning.

"You're free to arrive at your own conclusions as I am mine." Kyoko relented. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Makoto shoot her a grateful smile and rush out of the cafeteria. Looking back at Sayaka's masked expression she could not hold back the sigh. "Just some friendly advice: don't push it right now. I don't mean to be cruel, and again I can only draw assumptions about what happened, but you should give him time."

Her piece said, Kyoko turned to walk past the idol.

"Wounds don't heal so easily. Mental or physical."

The twitch Sayaka gave was all the information she needed. Her hunch proven correct.

Not that she ever doubted it.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto closed the door to his bedroom. He had been putting this off all day, and for good reason in his mind.

He simply didn't feel ready to face her.

'Though, at this rate, I never will be.' He admitted internally.

Under the guise of getting to know his other classmates he spent the day talking to them all. A nice experience, true, but in reality, it was all done in an attempt to avoid the blue-haired girl. It was cowardly, he knew, but he never claimed to have a strong will.

"I have to do this." He muttered to himself.

Standing in front of Sayaka's door, he took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Not a second later and it opened a crack.

"Naegi-kun!?"

Then it opened completely.

Makoto felt his breath hitch as the implications of being invited in were not lost on him.

'I trust you completely, Naegi-kun.'

Still, he stood his ground.

"Naegi-kun…"

Though she made it damn hard to do so.

"What-"

"Maizono-san." He cut her off. He had to, or else he'd back down, and he couldn't.

Not now.

"Maizono-san…" he tried again. "I think I need some space from you… for a while, at least."

Her heart-broken expression tore at his heart. Despite this, he pictured how Kyoko would handle the situation and set his face in stone. He had to do this; he knew he did.

He wished he didn't, however.

"Maizono-san the more I think about everything, the more I realize I put too much trust in you far too quickly." His façade cracked slightly at the admission. "This is hard. You can't even imagine how difficult this is for me to say."

Trailing off, he felt his determination waver.

He wouldn't let it.

"I'm pretty sure we both need this, alright?" His conviction was there, though his plastered smile was fading fast. "This won't be easy on me either but… I can't go on like this."

Turning away from her despair-ridden countenance was the hardest decision he's ever made.

"I'm sorry, Maizono-san. Goodbye."

Makoto closed the door as fast as he could. Falling to the ground in front of it, he let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding.

"It's for the best, she was just using me after all." He told himself. "I can't keep bringing myself to care about someone like that, can I?"

The Luckster got up from the ground and slowly made his way back to his room, suddenly feeling exhausted. His heart felt heavy, and his thoughts continued swirling.

Throughout all of this, he remained ignorant of the soul-wrenching cries from the girl next door.

Sleep never came.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

No… no, no God. This can't be happening.

Makoto stared down at Junko's body, his face incapable of hiding the emotions he felt at such a scene.

'Why!?' he cried out internally. 'We were just hanging out earlier. Talking. Laughing. Everything was fine! Why would anyone want to hurt someone like that…?'

His mind was in disarray as he stared at the broken corpse at Sayaka's feet. His first impulse, as much as he didn't want to admit it, was to blame her for the model's death. He had seen what she was capable of, after all, and that was enough reason to point a finger in her direction.

"Maizono-san didn't do this, Naegi-kun."

"Oh?" he laughed without humor. "How can you be so sure? The body was found in front of her door, she was the first at the scene of the crime, and… and I have seen her fake reactions, just like that, before."

Kyoko was silent for a moment as she examined his face in greater detail.

"The reason that she didn't do it, is because when you put everything together, it seems far too obvious." She narrowed her eyes. "No matter your current view on her, you cannot deny that Maizono-san is smart. If she were to plan a murder, I have no doubt that it would be far more intellectually sound than just dumping a body in front of her door."

Makoto flinched at the statement. It hit a little too close to home.

"You're… right." He admitted. "Maizono-san is certainly smarter than I think people give her credit for. If she were to commit a murder, she would have thought things through more."

"Right."

Did that give too much away, Makoto wondered. Did she somehow figure things out by his agreement? Sneaking a peek at her expression, he was both relieved and annoyed at seeing a blank slate.

Was that good or bad, or-?

"I suspect that we'll be called to investigate this case."

"We will…?" he asked unsure. "What makes you think that?"

She looked more carefully at the body that the rest of the class was pretending didn't exist. She wanted to examine it up close but knew it wasn't the time. Pieces were coming together, even without such knowledge.

"Naegi-kun I'm gonna need you to listen to me during the investigation, alright?" she spoke calmly, and without any distress over their predicament. "I should be able to find Enoshima-san's killer. I can promise you justice."

He had no real reason to believe anything she said, and yet…

"I believe you."

Kyoko blinked, taken aback by his admission before smiling slightly.

"Good, let's go to the gymnasium then. No sense in antagonizing Monokuma unnecessarily."

He nodded before following after her. Looking over his shoulder he paused in his step.

"Actually, you go on without me. I'll catch up soon, I promise."

She raised an eyebrow before looking back and seeing Sayaka standing alone, and in worry. Kyoko kept walking.

Makoto looked over at Sayaka, worry was evident on her face, and he wasn't sure he could alleviate it.

"Ne, Maizono-san… are you alright?"

Tactful.

She seemed as surprised as he was with his rather abrupt question.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine Naegi-kun. Thank you for asking."

What else was she supposed to say…?

"That's good then…"

"Yeah…"

…

Makoto opened his mouth to speak more. To ask her how she was really doing, to question if she had any idea who could have done this, to hear from her mouth that she was innocent-

No. He had to believe in her.

Shaking his head he dashed off towards the rest of the group, standing beside Kyoko in line. Worrying about things he couldn't change, wouldn't get him anywhere. He'd have to believe in Sayaka's innocence, and Kyoko's ability to help them.

He'd find out who killed Junko. No matter what.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The trial went exactly as Kyoko had said it would. It was almost scary how everything was mapped out to a tea. How had she known the precise moment when people would object or what they would say? It was scary, to say the least.

But it wasn't even close to the terror he felt watching Sakura's execution.

The execution was bad. Such a word would sound like an understatement to most, but to Makoto it wasn't. The word, in his mind didn't just imply a 'slightly negative' thing, it was the very absence of 'good'.

His previously spoken words felt like empty platitudes now.

'I feel so… so numb.' Makoto walked towards the now-open elevator; his steps sluggish in nature. 'I had no idea something so horrific could exist.'

Hina's guttural scream almost caused him to lose his lunch. Throwing up from the guilt of his actions. Even though it wasn't by choice, he was one of the leading forces in causing Sakura to be executed.

He'd never be able to forget that.

As the elevator lurched upwards, he felt a realization shoot through him. Something he'd been trying to ignore ever since Monokuma first told them the rules of this place.

'Life here is fragile. Incredibly so.'

Time was no longer a given. A right. It was a luxury. Something that the majority of them did not have.

As the group stepped off the elevator, he watched absentmindedly as Sayaka rushed to her room and closed the door behind her.

"I'm gonna set this right." He spoke softly to himself.

"You really think you're ready for that, Naegi-kun…?"

Or so he thought.

Looking over, he was surprised to see Kyoko had yet to return to her room. She had her eyebrow raised, and her arms crossed. As if to say, 'your idea seems foolhardy'.

"I am, Kirigiri-san. I promise. This is… this is something I need to do."

The girl stepped forward and looked deep into his eyes for a moment. Apparently satisfied with what she found, she stepped back.

"Very well then. I can see that this is something you consider important to you. Don't hold back on my accord."

With that, Kyoko began heading to her room.

"Kirigiri-san!"

She stopped in her gate but didn't turn back.

"I just wanted to say thank you." Makoto smiled sadly, though she couldn't see. "You didn't know me, but you still went out of your way to help me so much. I just wanted to thank you for that."

There was silence for a moment before she continued walking towards her room.

Her response was quiet, and direct but far from meaningless.

"You're welcome, Naegi-kun."

With that, he stood straight and headed towards Sayaka's room; purpose in his steps.

No matter the outcome of the conversation, he prepared himself to face it head on.

Makoto knocked on her door.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makoto sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. The past couple days had pushed him to his absolute limits. Forcing him out of his comfort zone to the point that he, of all people, helped to lead a murder trial.

"This place is insane…" he whispered.

There was little else he could say about the situation. Hopes Peak Academy was worse than any nightmare he could ever conjure up, and he had a feeling that things were only going to get worse. That thought caused a shudder to run down his spine. It was terrifying.

"Ngh… Naegi-kun…"

His thoughts were cut off from his dream-induced assistant. Sayaka slept soundly, her face the image of serenity. A far-cry from the terror that adorned her features merely a few hours prior.

A show of immense trust, she turned away from him in order to sleep. He could honestly say the amount of people in this place that he would ever feel comfortable doing that with could be counted on one hand, and even then, probably less. Ironically enough, the one he felt safest around was the one who almost killed him in the first place.

"This place really is insane." He reaffirmed with a self-deprecating chuckle. "However,"

He smiled softly at the girl beside him.

"After everything we've been through there's no one else I'd rather go through it with."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Note: Sorry for being so late with this! I honestly forgot about ao3... I primarily use FF.net. Sorry about that guys:)


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